NOTE: The samle research paper or essay prompt you see on this page is a free essay, available to anyone. You can use any paper as a sample on how to write research paper, essay prompts or as a source of information. We strongly discourage you to directly copy/paste any essay and turn it in for credit. If your school uses any plagiarism detecting software, you might be caught and accused of plagiarism. If you need a custom essay or research paper, written from scratch exclusively for you, please use our paid research paper writing service!

Rabbits immobilized in wooden stocks with ulcers
in their eyes; baby seals being clubbed over the
head, and the infamous shock treatment. Broach the
subject with an individual and odds are that they
have witnessed footage of one or all of the
aforementioned practices and are appalled by the
cruelty. Appalled yes, willing to stand up and
voice their thoughts.. not often. There is one
significant reason for this unwillingness by some
to stand up for the rights of our fellow
inhabitants of this planet, personal convenience.
We are systematically cutting down the last forest
that provides their shelter to farm cattle; we
dump toxic chemicals and sewage into the waters in
which they live; we wear the tusks of the last few
of their species on our arms, and we pour cosmetic
products into their eyes, rectums or vaginas to
determine the harmful effects they might cause on
humans, even though the physiological
differentiation between humans and the animals
they use is durastic.

On a daily basis most people
do not see their own degree of unintentional
support towards this global dilemma, but when
compiled on paper one must question how mankind
can, with conscience, commit these acts which
shame us as human beings. Animals possess the same
kinds of feelings and emotions as human beings,
and without anesthesia, they are subjected to the
pain as well. Mankind often fails to give animals
the respect and rights they deserve, they are
treated as lifeless, unfeeling scientific
specimens and items that we may manipulate at our
own convenience and for vanity's sake. Laboratory
research involving animals is cruel and merciless
treatment of helpless creatures. No law requires
that cosmetics and household products be tested on
animals.

Nevertheless, by six o'clock this
evening, hundreds of animals will have had their
eyes, skin or gastrointestinal systems
unnecessarily burned or destroyed (Sequoia, 27).
Two of the most famous animal tests are the
Draize, or eye irritancy test and the LD50, Lethal
Dose 50. The Draize test is performed almost
exclusively on albino rabbits, such as the Florida
White, because they are cheap, docile, and are not
"equipped" with tear ducts to wash away the
chemicals. During the test the rabbits are
immobilized in a stock with only their head
protruding and a solid or liquid is placed in the
lower lid of one eye of the rabbit; substances
vary from mascara to aftershave and even oven
cleaner. The rabbits eyes are clipped open and
observed at intervals of 1, 24, 48, 72 and 168
hours. It is important to note that, during this
test, anesthesia is rarely used.

Reactions include
inflammation, ulceration, rupture of the eyeball,
corrosion and bleeding. Some of these studies
continue for weeks, and all the while no measures
are made to reduce suffering or treat the rabbits.
Survival, however, will only lead to an entirely
new set of tests, such as the skin irritancy or
the LD50. Lethal Dose 50 refers to the lethal dose
that is required to kill 50% of all animals in a
test group of 40-200. Animals are force fed
substances through a stomach tube, forced to
inhale a substance, or have the substance applied
to their rectum or vagina. These tests continue
until half of the test animals die.

During these
tests animals will often endure excruciating pain,
convulsions, loss of motor function, seizures,
vomiting, paralysis and bleeding from every open
orifice in the body. Any animals who somehow
manage to survive these particular tests are
subsequently destroyed (Sequoia, 29). There is
also a Lethal Dose 100 test that determines the
amount of a test substance required to kill 100%
of the test animals. Ironically, results of these
tests are rarely, if ever, used in situation of
actual human poisoning. The skin irritancy test,
similar to the eye irritancy test, is where an
animal, most commonly a rodent, has a highly
concentrated solution of a chemical in question
applied to their skin.

Their skin is then observed
for signs of irritancy, such as redness and
blistering. In some cases, the irritation can be
so bad that the product actually burns through the
skin. Not only are these tests cruel, but the
results are unreliable and unnecessary as
scientific evidence. As with the aforementioned
Draize test; rabbits eyes are not the same as
human eyes - there are profound differences,
mainly the absence of tear ducts. In addition,
different species react differently to various
substances; substances that fail to damage a
rabbits eyes may be toxic to a human.

For example,
nicotine is lethal to humans at 0.9mg/kg, but
lethal dose value of nicotine in dogs are a
staggering 9.2mg/kg, in pigeons 75mg/kg, and in
rats, 53mg/kg (PETA Factsheet). Another example,
results from experiences which exposed a variety
of animal species to cigarette smoke led
researchers to believe that smoking did not cause
cancer. Because of this, warning labels on packs
were delayed for years and cigarette manufacturers
still use animal data to question the harmful
effects of their products. The drugs Oraflex,
Selacryn, Zomax, Suprol and Meritol produced such
adverse side effects in humans, including death,
that they were removed from the market, though
animal experimentation had predicted them all to
be safe. One of the few studies that examined the
differences in species reactions, found only that
5-25% correlation between harmful effects in
people and the results of animal experiments
(Heywood, R.).

The question of why such tests
continue must be raised. The truth of the matter
is easy, traditional and readily funded. Whatever
the reason may be, animal research has accorded a
certain level of prestige; this has important
economic implications, and funding agencies often
favour these projects (Sequoia, 85). In essence,
it can all be traced back to the notion of
convenience raised earlier in our research -
mankind has a tendency to seek out the fastest and
easiest way to formulate an answer, for the
cheapest cost. Sadly, it seems animals may not be
entirely saved from this tendency just yet.

While
animals still continue to be violated in
laboratories, a consciousness about our
responsibility toward our relationship with
animals has begun and continued to rise. As a
result of pressures from animal advocacy groups s
...